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Skill · Content and copy

Content and copy.

Strong content is strong on all five dimensions.

Write or edit content that serves a specific reader and goal. General content production: blog posts, website copy, how-to guides, explainers, knowledge base articles. Strong content is strong on hook, structure, voice, substance, and closing, and weakness on any one drags the rest down.

The skill outlines before it drafts, drafts for substance before voice, and edits by cutting more often than adding. Specialized skills cover landing pages and email; this one covers the editorial middle.

Audience: writers, marketers, and editors drafting articles and web copy, or editing existing content for voice and clarity.

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The framework

Five dimensions every strong piece shares.

Strong content holds up on all five. A weak one usually fails on a specific dimension, not in general.

  1. 01Hook: the opening earns the read in the first 3 to 5 seconds. Promise specific value, surface a tension, open a loop, or show a recognizable moment.
  2. 02Structure: one pattern the reader follows without effort (problem-solution-proof, how-to steps, compare-contrast-recommend). Most weak content drifts between structures.
  3. 03Voice: the piece sounds like the brand. Read a paragraph aloud; if it sounds like generic marketing or someone else's voice, edit until it does not.
  4. 04Substance: every paragraph earns its place through specifics, an original take, actionable detail, and honest tradeoffs, rather than padding to a word count.
  5. 05Closing: the piece ends with intention. Resolve the loop from the hook, issue a specific next action, or land a memorable line.

How the skill runs

Structure first, substance next, voice in the edit.

For a new piece, the skill works in a fixed order so the structure is sound before any prose, and voice arrives in editing.

  1. 01

    Confirm the brief

    Reader, goal, length, voice. If the brief is vague, do not write yet.

  2. 02

    Outline

    Structure first: headlines and section purposes only, no prose until the structure holds.

  3. 03

    Open with the hook

    Write the opening before anything else. If the hook is not working, the rest will not either.

  4. 04

    Draft for substance

    The first draft is about getting the substance down; voice comes in the edit.

  5. 05

    Edit for voice

    Read aloud, tighten sentences, cut padding, and apply the brand voice.

  6. 06

    Edit for clarity

    Each paragraph earns its place; each sentence has an unambiguous meaning.

  7. 07

    Pre-publish checks

    Header order, internal links, image alt text, and the SEO basics: title, meta, slug.

Reference files

Two references that go alongside the SKILL.md.

  • references/content-brief-template.md

    The brief that should exist before any content is written: reader, goal, voice, length, and structural constraints.

  • references/content-edit-checklist.md

    The pre-publish editing checklist run before the piece ships.

Browse all reference files on GitHub

Bridges to other skills

The specialized writing skills around it.

Content and copy is the general editorial craft. These cover the specialized formats and the work upstream of the words.

  • Conversion pages

    landing-page-copy

    Conversion-focused landing pages are their own craft: hero, value proposition, social proof, objection handling. This skill covers general editorial content rather than the sales page.

  • The inbox

    email-sequences

    Email campaigns and sequences carry their own structure and timing. Reach for this skill for articles and web copy, and that one for anything that lands in an inbox.

  • Defines the voice

    brand-voice

    Defines the voice this content applies. If the voice is undefined, set it there first, or write against a documented working voice.

  • Keyword research

    seo-keyword

    Keyword research and intent classification happen upstream. Content and copy writes the piece those keywords point to.

  • The plan above it

    content-strategy

    Plans the program: pillars, calendar, governance. This skill writes the individual pieces the plan schedules.

Open source under MIT

Read the SKILL.md on GitHub.

The skill source lives in the rampstackco/claude-skills repository alongside dozens of other skills covering the full lifecycle of brand and product work. This page is a structured overview; the SKILL.md is the source. MIT licensed.

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Frequently asked questions.

What makes a strong hook?
An opening that earns the read in the first 3 to 5 seconds, because that is when most readers decide whether to continue. Strong hooks promise specific value, surface a tension ('most advice on X is wrong, here is why'), open a loop the piece resolves, state a contrarian point you can defend, or show a recognizable moment rather than summarizing. Weak hooks clear their throat ('in today's fast-paced world'), open with a dictionary definition, state the obvious, or make a vague promise to 'explore' the topic.
How do I keep the voice from sounding generic?
Read a paragraph aloud. If it sounds like AI, like generic marketing, or like someone else's voice, edit until it sounds like the brand actually talks. Keep the voice attributes consistent throughout, shift tone appropriately for the topic (a serious subject gets a serious tone even from a playful brand), honor the vocabulary preferences, and follow the brand's style standards. Generic voice, where the piece reads like every other article in the category, is one of the most common failure modes.
How is writing different from editing in this skill?
For new pieces, the order is brief, outline, hook, draft for substance, then edit for voice and clarity, then pre-publish checks. For editing existing content, read the whole piece first before changing anything, note what is working so you do not damage it, identify what is broken, then edit by priority: structure first (move or cut sections), then substance, then voice, then sentence-level polish. Read aloud at the end to catch awkward phrasing the eye misses. Strong editing usually cuts rather than adds.
Where does substance come from?
Specifics ('roughly 40 percent' beats 'many'), an original perspective rather than a summary of everyone else's, actionable detail the reader can use, honest tradeoffs about what does not work or is overhyped, and real examples. Lack of substance shows up as padding, restating the same point across three paragraphs, generalities anyone in the category could write, and word counts hit by stretching rather than depth.
When should I use a different skill?
Use landing-page-copy for conversion pages, email-sequences for email campaigns and sequences, brand-voice to define the voice itself, seo-keyword for keyword research, and content-strategy for planning the program. Content and copy is for general editorial production: the article, the web page section, the explainer, the knowledge base piece, written for a specific reader and goal.